She paused in sprucing up her displays, the time ticking toward noon, when Janey would arrive to take her to lunch. Though they saw each other every day and they helped one another out, sometimes it was nice for the two of them to just sit and relax. Eat a meal together. Talk about their own challenges.
Gretchen’s thoughts wandered down the Lavender Highway, and when her phone chimed a message from Janey saying she was at the corner, Gretchen turned the OPEN sign to CLOSED, where she’d taped a handwritten note that said, “I’ll be back at 1 PM.”
After making sure the front door was locked and hurrying down the sidewalk, she slid into Janey’s Jeep. “Hey.” She didn’t mean to exhale like the weight of the world was on her shoulders.
“Oh, hey. What’s up?”
“Nothing.”
“Didn’t sound like noth
